Monitoring adult populations of two insect pests with sex pheromone traps for effective timing of interventions against the defoliators of onion (Allium cepa L.) grown after rice (Oryza sativa L.)

Issue Date

10-2004

Abstract

The lack of effective surveillance and monitoring tools to time interventions results in unnecessarily high frequency of insecticide spraying to control insect defoliators of onion grown after rice. Field studies were conducted in Bongabon, Nueva Ecija during the 2001 and 2002 dry seasons to evaluate the effectiveness of sex pheromone-baited traps as indicator for proper timing of insecticide applications against onion defoliators, Spodoptera litura (F.) and S. exigua (Hubner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae). In both years, critical peaks in adult trap catch were recorded between 25 and 59 days after transplanting. One to three insecticide applications at 3,5, or 7 days after peaks in sex pheromone trap catch resulted in crop yield and leaf damage similar to those in weekly-sprayed plots. Yields from plants in all treatments were significantly higher than those in the untreated plots. The use of sex pheromone-baited traps can reduce frequency of insecticide applications substantially, form weekly spraying to only 1-3 applications in a cropping season without reducing yield. It also reduces farmers' exposure to pesticides and minimizes adverse effects on natural enemies of pests. The use of sex pheromone-baited traps can be a key decision tool in developing cost-reducing technologies to manage S. litura and S. exigua in rice-onion vegetable cropping system.

Source or Periodical Title

Philippine Entomologist

ISSN

0048-3753

Volume

18

Issue

2

Page

139-150

Document Type

Article

Frequency

semi-annually

Physical Description

tables; graphs

Language

English

En – AGROVOC descriptors

SPODOPTERA LITURA; SPODOPTERA EXIGUA; ORYZA SATIVA; ALLIUM CEPA; INSECTA; PLANT PESTS; PEST MANAGEMENT; SEX PHEROMONES; SEX ATTRACTANTS; PEST MONITORING

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